Futureproof DIY kits and barebones, tell me about your expectations!

[gvel50]

Hello guys,

First let me introduce myself, my name is Gijs van Elderen, I'm from the Netherlands and starting my own business in domotica.
My specialties are Clearos (Clarkconnect), Windows CE and starting with Windows 7 embedded, routers, electrics, video/AV equipment.
I'm a not a really technic guy like the some of the guru's on this forum, be gentle (still learning at a fast rate)

Expertise from LinuxMCE is limited for now,I have used the product for 1 year. However I'M A HUGE FAN of non-windows based media solutions!!! And by far LINUXMCE rules!
I'm enthousiastic about the basic model of LinuxMCE and want to give this a real business opportunity.

I really need your input! Of course your input will be reward itself into a perfect solution for you at home that is futureproof.

I have good contacts with A-class suppliers such as HP/Cisco/Legrand/Acer/ a diversity of wholesale companies eg Ingram/Misco
I already called one of my contacts at Misco a explained my idea about a single hardware solution with LinuxMCE

The consumer is the one who can make the LinuxMCE project goes mainstream, so we really need

What are my ideas/questions:

1. at least one hardware platform for which we can make a preinstall environment for users.

2. Android and Iphone apps including good and solid scaling for tablets. I mean I like the webinterface, but people who have smartphones don't necesarry have knowledge about mediacenters or IT knowhow. and everybody likes cool apps!

3. We need at least a couple major brands to support LinuxMCE right out of the box (eg boxee)

4. LinuxMCE is still a very technical solution, mainstream people don't have the time and energy and knowhow to set it up properly. How can we make this more simple(nearly for retarded people)?

5. The skin is a bite outdated, yes I know there are several nice skins. However they are still under development or haven't been worked on for a very long time. Can we make simple but effective changes to make it very sleek and shiny to look at?

6. We need very good input/ time/ investments from suppliers and developers. Like the Z-wave integration of products


Please reply to my questions with remarks in the order of my ideas. This will make it easy for everybody too read.

My answers for my ideas:
1. For example I have read great stories about the Nvidia ION/ Intel Atom/Pineview configurations. These will make excellent futureproof costefficient Media Players or perhaps in very simple cases nice mediaservers! My idea of a simple server would be to intergrate the Sandy Bridge GPU architecture, the performance is excellent for decoding videos and playback. These products are still a bit expensive for the most of us. However I can supply the new mainboards and new CPU/GPU units/ knowhow and in the future resources (people and money)
platform: Sandy Bridge or perhaps the new AMD Fusion?
mainboard: any motherboard manufacturing company that are interested to make it part of a software/ total package
tv-cards: still looking into that one, have read about good results with haupage (have send a email to the sales already)
network: one or two supported cards, for example Realtek 8111 NIC's
case: simple solution (go for the cleanest possible exterior)
remote: LinuxMCE remote? Logitech harmony/ duet?!?!?
harddisk configurations: software raid (displayed i easy terms for home users, putting a extra disc in should be easy as pie!)

2. I think that the new generation of social media addicts and new group of users that already started working with pc's since they where little (age 6-7), now are ready to take the smartphone market and tablet as well as media/domotica to a new level. In my opinion very slick and well organised applications are key! Official support from the android market is so important. I already approached 17 companies for development of Android applications and received several good responses.

3. Is it possible with a limited budget to make a mediaplayer/extender solution with for example a new Nvidia Tegra chip? This will make an excellent thin client solution. I have a positive reaction from Nvidia, they are interested! Also a good solution would be a combo pack including a logitech duet solution

4. If we keep the fully supported hardware list to a minimum we can make several install cd's that are almost completly ready-to-use
And we could make menus designed for kids! So write down your requirements and recommendations.

5. Is there someone here that has a fully slick and sleek working skin that is up to date with the new windows 7 aero like theme? Or who can make this? Or would be interested to do so.

6. If you support me and perhaps guide me, I will do everything that is in my power to get it done. I already made an appointment with a electric socket/ lighting appliances (legrand, they are attempting to get a open-source domotica solution!)

So please give me your input!!! I would really appreciate it and it will benefit the LINUXMCE project!


With respect and friendly greetings


Gijs

ps sorry for my english, it has been a while since I typed something like this

[bongowongo]

Send us money.

[tschak909]

Yeah, pretty much what he said.

I hate to totally bust bubbles here, but... you're not as clever as you think.

You say you've used this system for a year, yet...we've never heard a peep from you, nor have your questions taken on the air of someone who has used the product for an appreciable amount of time....

You're wanting us, to do all your work for you.

We do not appreciate that, at all. No. Don't rebut. Don't...say...a..word....

LinuxMCE is a very complex piece of software, and we only have limited resources to extend it forward. But we are also a very communicative community in general, if someone had made a "Windows 7 aero skin" ... we would know about it, because it would have to be checked into the database.

Of course you have good contacts... every SALESMAN, has good contacts. Hate to tell you bro, you're a dime a dozen. For every one of you, there are a gazillion others like you, that come by here, and tell us the exact same pitch... There is nothing special about you. We hear the same thing, week after week.

We have other issues that need to be resolved, before anything like this can happen.

I know it can seem very alien to you, how can anyone conceive to have this attitude, right? Well, it's really very simple, quite a few of us have been seduced in the past, by carrot patches just over the hill. We're not interested. What we're interested in, is people that will come and help develop the system. We have no short term pressures, and we do this on our own time. This is critical, especially since we still have licensing issues to resolve.

Quite frankly, your eagerness to grab for power disgusts me. People like you are the reason this planet is going to hell.

Thank you, Have a nice day.
-Thom

[bongowongo]

To sum it up.
Make an effort, get to know the system, earn respect by helping, don't try to play te manager, do not tell them you are Dutch.......I ruinened that one for you, sorry.

[gvel50]

So everybody or the most hard workers here have bad experiences with commercial/sales people. I'm living from a wellfare income. I don't have a job, I'm starting my own place because I believe in domotica! And for me it is the ultimate intergration and the future of IT!

This is my story:
7 years ago i had an idea to put a centralized sync-server at home for email/ media/ online services to connect to a carmediasystem, the in-car could be a relative simple via itx board. It would automatically sync when you got home or hit a wifispot (umts and hsdpa weren't available at that time.) i build my first car pc, made my own skin for the 7 inch touchscreen. I couldn't find good help the make my project worth wild, so it ended up in the gutter! I tried many things to make it work. I sacreficed my relationship for it. Long hours trying to get it to work decently. Finally got hold of the commercial and well paying market of selling shit. I don't want that anymore it made me misserable. Instead I'm going to start what I do believe in.

Why did I never help anybody? Because first of all: I didn't had the time for it yet, however this is my first post. Try to look from it from another perspective: every help you can get is worth it, if not just decline my help.

Why didn't I post anything on the forum, very good question: I never needed support, browsed the forums for answers and googled the hell out of my box.
However it was/is selfish of me to not spend time on someone's problems other than mine! I'm sorry for that and I promise better myself in the future on this forum!

I'm not trying to sell you anything. I'm asking you what you need for resources of knowledge or special products. Maybe I can help OF COURSE FREE OF CHARGE!! This I won't do if I didn't believe in LinuxMCE

You say it's a long term project, ok so what's the vision for the future? Where do you as developers/ active members want to go in let's keep it simple 3 years?

I'm sorry for my egotistic behaviour in the last year. Thankfully this is a new year with new possibilities


With friendly greetings


Gijs

[bongowongo]

What is always welcomed are people who want hardware their support and are willing to do some effort and get it supported.
Also documented nicely in the wikipedia is always a bonus.
Next three years of linuxmce? 1004, new orbiter architecture, wider hardware support (e.g. intel/ati vid)
Dig in and do stuff. We have no managers here, manage yourself, and if it is a worthy subject you are touching you will get the help automaticly.

[gvel50]

Also want to add that within 8 weeks I will have an 100mbit up/down optical fiber connection.
I have an Vmware ESX host that can easily can host 10 vm's just dedicated for you guys. Here you can put all your stuff together or test something in a virtual environment. Perhaps this not ideal for the linking of several USB/ serial ports, but I can link USB directly to the VM. This host is a Xeon 3440 with 24gb 2x ssd in raid 0 and 3tb of disk space left. Also have several HP thin clients with embedded or CE lying around.

Could this help you. I will make the perparations VM's, for HAdesigner or something like that. Of course you can send VM config files or complete vm's as well.

[bongowongo]

I get back to you on this. First I need to do an exam, and drink beer..........

[wierdbeard65]

I'm living from a wellfare income. I don't have a job

Also want to add that within 8 weeks I will have an 100mbit up/down optical fiber connection.
I have an Vmware ESX host that can easily can host 10 vm's just dedicated for you guys.

I don't wish to be rude, but these two statements don't seem to fit well together. I don't know about the Netherlands, but in most countries, the benefits system is not sufficient to fund this kind of set-up This may be one of the reasons you don't seem to be being taken seriously. 

[gvel50]

The wellfare income is just temperary. And in the City i live in, we have a non-profit initiative for the people who live there. So we can get a fiber line for just 45 euro each month. Really cheap.

And most of all I care for mine computers. And this ESX host I bought with the sales bonus I got last year. I stopped working half december. So nothing to worry about. I don't have an expensive household just a couple of PC's nothing more.

take a look:www.onsbrabantnet.nl/internet